The American psychedelic rock group, The Grateful Dead, were founded in 1965 and are often referred to as procuring one of the first cult followings in rock music history. The term “Deadhead,” is a name given to fans of the famous counter culture band which was first printed at the suggestion of "Hank Harrison" author of The Dead Trilogy, on the sleeve of Grateful Dead (also known as Skull & Roses), the band's second live album.
Well this job I've got is just a little too hard,
Running out of money, Lord, I need more pay. - "Beat It On Down The Line" The Grateful Dead (1967)
On the back of the album sleeve it read DEAD FREAKS UNITE: “Who are you? Where are you? How are you? Send us your name and address and we'll keep you informed. Dead Heads, P.O. Box 1065, San Rafael, California 94901.”
Critic Robert Christgau first made note of the phenomenon at a Grateful Dead concert in 1971, when he observed “how many regulars seemed to be in attendance, and how, from the way they compared notes, they’d obviously made a determined effort to see as many shows as possible.”
The tie-dyed t-shirt then became the unofficial deadhead uniform, and they adopted a unique vernacular and a knowledge of the band’s songs and habits to rival any cult following seen in modern America.
The Deadhead phenomenon grew from a small number of fans who began travelling to see the band in as many shows or festival venues as they could. However, because of the popularity of the band, eventually large droves of people began attending strings of shows, thus a community developed. When this developed into a cult following is subjective but as the deadhead church grew larger, subcultures of hardcore fans emerged within the Deadheads' ranks one such group were called “Spinners.”
Spinners were named as such for the incredible quantity of hallucinogenic substances they would indulge in (mostly magic mushrooms and acid) which would outstrip the consumption of a regular Deadhead. This would cause them to enter wild fits of movement which culminated in one of the group telling the rest to spin on their heels as to induce more pleasure from the drugs.
Critic Robert Christgau first made note of the phenomenon at a Grateful Dead concert in 1971, when he observed “how many regulars seemed to be in attendance, and how, from the way they compared notes, they’d obviously made a determined effort to see as many shows as possible.”
The tie-dyed t-shirt then became the unofficial deadhead uniform, and they adopted a unique vernacular and a knowledge of the band’s songs and habits to rival any cult following seen in modern America.
The Deadhead phenomenon grew from a small number of fans who began travelling to see the band in as many shows or festival venues as they could. However, because of the popularity of the band, eventually large droves of people began attending strings of shows, thus a community developed. When this developed into a cult following is subjective but as the deadhead church grew larger, subcultures of hardcore fans emerged within the Deadheads' ranks one such group were called “Spinners.”
Spinners were named as such for the incredible quantity of hallucinogenic substances they would indulge in (mostly magic mushrooms and acid) which would outstrip the consumption of a regular Deadhead. This would cause them to enter wild fits of movement which culminated in one of the group telling the rest to spin on their heels as to induce more pleasure from the drugs.
In fact members of this group “Lian,” and “Rago” (hippie nick names, real names are not disclosed by the source) took it upon themselves to form an organised religion based on the band, called: the Church of Unlimited Devotion. This religion made Jerry Garcia (lead guitarist and founder) their prophet and taught its followers that true spirituality could only be achieved by worshipping the band.
Other less intense subgroups also emerged. There were the “Wookies,” described as such because of their resemblance to the hairy character in the film Star Wars. Wharf rats who were those Deadheads who did not partake in the plethora of drugs associated with the band and advised others to do the same. And tapers who are pretty self-explanatory. Mike Morin, a devoted Deadhead who became hooked on the band while in high school estimates he’s been to some 75 shows since 1973, attending concerts in 10 states over the past 40 years. In any case the Deadhead collective was, and is, on a scale like no other group of fans had ever been before, to the extent whereby tens of thousands of people would flock to the bands location at any one time. Truly a cult following in its earliest definition of the word.
By Tim Price
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